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Membership: Recipe for Success

Membership Recipe for Success – Part I

Spring/Summer:

  1. FORM Membership Committee with the following potential members
  • Membership VP/Committee Chair
  • Ways and Means/Fundraising VP/Chair
  • Volunteer VP/Chair
  • Hospitality Chair
  • Other: ____________
  1. PROPOSE for Approval:
    • PTA/PTSA President, Principal, Board approve plan of work including all printed materials. Remember: request permission to include membership envelopes/forms and any printed materials in school orientation packets.
    • Collecting donations during your membership campaign in addition to or in lieu of other fundraising
    • Membership incentives that need to be solicited or planned
  2. DEVELOP Membership Incentive Programs:
    Develop membership incentive programs for teachers, students, and parents. Set goals and awards to encourage all to join and join early. The best time to collect memberships is at orientations, open houses, PTA/PTSA meetings, programs and the first few weeks of school.
  3. PRINT Materials:
    • Donation/Solicitation Letter for local businesses for gift cards, money, etc. for prizes and other membership incentives – number depends on need.
    • Membership Envelope/Form – number based on the following formula (school population = students + faculty + extra) – You can get this information from your Principal or school office staff.
    • Brochure/Brag Sheet: attach to the membership envelope/form so you can share all the great ways PTA supports the school community.
    • Back-to-School info to possibly be sent to families at the end of summer prior to orientation or put in the orientation packets.
    • Welcome Back Teacher Breakfast/Event Invitations – number based on the following formula (faculty = teachers + staff+ administrators). You can kickoff your membership campaign and talk to faculty about helping share information about PTA and importance of joining.
    • Teacher Letter/Envelope explaining how the membership campaign will be run and an envelope for the membership envelopes/forms to be placed in each day for collection.
    • Log: date, member name, category (parent, student, grandparent, community), payment method. May want to have separate log sheets per teacher or master list with a category for teacher name. Also, be sure to note which member is attached to which student. You can do all of this either electronically or manually, but it is important to have this record.
    • “Thank you for Joining (Name of PTA/ PTSA)” notes to attach to Membership Cards that are returned through teachers to be sent home.
  4. PREPARE for Membership Drive:
    • Officer Registration: Must be submitted to receive Membership Cards and resource materials from Florida PTA.
    • Cards: Follow directions from Florida PTA to use computer printer to print PTA/PTSA Unit ID # and PTA Name on each card. You can write in the member name before distributing them. PLEASE DO NOT VOID or THROW AWAY cards as they are pre-numbered cards. If you make a mistake, you can use Wite Out to correct or save and send back with other unused cards at the end of the year. All cards must be paid for or returned.
    • Teacher/Class List: Request from Principal or office staff to enter names in database to make labels for packets and track total members per teacher.
    •  Incentives for new members: Organize coupons, gift cards, and any other incentives received from restaurants, retail stores, etc.
    • Membership Bulletin Board/Wall: create one somewhere in school prior to orientations/open houses to promote PTA
    • Volunteers: recruit to work at all orientation/open houses

Membership Recipe for Success – Part II

School Year:

Welcome Back Teacher Breakfast/Event – Preplanning Week

  1. Invitations in teacher mailboxes 1-5 days ahead
  2. Teacher Packet with collection envelopes in mailboxes before breakfast/event or during pre-planning week.
  3. Ask Principal for permission to speak at breakfast/event to Present Membership Plan (information, packets/envelopes. Incentives). Be sure to emphasize Faculty Incentives (i.e. Early Bird Drawings, gift cards, FPTA Awards, etc.); AND Student Incentives (special recognition/treats, extra credit/homework passes, gift cards, etc.)
  4. Prepare and serve breakfast or host event
  5. Faculty Memberships:
  6. Set up table with multiple stations to collect memberships, be sure to have cash change on hand and receipt cash transactions.
  7. Process cards quickly and preferably distribute in person to say thank you
  8. Remember: two people count money and complete “deposit” form to give to PTA/PTSA Treasurer as soon as possible. Keep money locked in safe place while waiting to give to Treasurer to verify and deposit.

Student Orientation – One to two weeks prior to 1st Day of School

1. Advertising

  • Prepare and put up flyers in hallways and school entrances that direct families to Membership Tables in school location.
  • Prepare and place flyers on the PTA/PTSA Bulletin Board/Wall.
  • Announce on School and/or PTA Website, Newsletter, School Marquee, etc.

2. Membership Tables

  • Recruit volunteers for multiple stations, with multiple shifts over multiple days
  • Get cash change on first day – record the amount for separate deposit.
  • Make sure each station includes the following: Folder with procedures for processing memberships, membership log sheets, cards, cash pouch, pens and “Wite-Out”. You may want to hand out cards and incentives that day or at a later time.

3. Remember: two people count money and complete “deposit” form to give to PTA/PTSA Treasurer as soon as possible. Keep money locked in safe place while waiting to give to Treasurer to verify and deposit.

Membership Drive – 1st nine weeks and beyond!

  1. Collect and process memberships from Teacher Envelopes in timely manner – daily at first, be sure to enter all names and other important information in the Membership log and on each Teacher Tracking Sheet.
  2. Count money (2 people complete “deposit” form and give to PTA/PTSA Treasurer as soon as possible. Keep money locked in safe place if waiting to give to Treasurer.
  3. Update database – daily at first. Use membership envelopes, record membership and volunteer data, then pass volunteer contact information on to Volunteer VP/Chair.
  4. Deliver all incentive awards and prizes to faculty and students on a regular basis
  5. Post tally sheets in Faculty mail room, outside classrooms for teacher homerooms, and or in dining room, so member totals are easily visible and to promote healthy competition.

Mid-Year Membership Drive – January/February

  1. Request list of new students to school from Principal or school office staff
  2. Provide teachers with information to send home PTA information and membership envelope/form
  3. Follow same steps as listed under Membership Drive

Membership Vice President/Committee Chair – All year!

  1. Remind PTSA Treasurer dues MUST be sent to Florida PTA monthly.
  2. Bring membership totals report to monthly PTA/PTSA board meetings and General membership meetings as scheduled.
  3. Remember: MARCH 1 is the deadline for final membership payment to arrive at the Florida PTA Office. Your PTA/PTSA is responsible for all cards, so be sure to return all unused cards with final dues payment.
  4. Complete and submit Membership Awards Applications to the Florida PTA Office at many different times of the year.
  5. Use the Florida PTA website at www.floridapta.org under Running Your PTA, the Florida PTA Kit of Materials in the Committee section and/or the PTA Membership is Year Round handout as resources to determine which membership award eligibility
  6. The FINAL Membership Award Application Deadline is March 31st:
  7. Allow time to acquire required signatures from President, Treasurer, and Principal if required on the respective membership award application.

Traditional Florida PTA Membership Awards:

  • 100% Membership
    • Early Bird Gold – October 1st
    • Early Bird Silver – November 1st
    • Early Bird Bronze – December 1st
  • 100% Faculty
  • Acorn Faculty – majority, but not 100% faculty join
  • Grandparent
    • Gold – 25+ join
    • Silver – 10 to 24 join
  • Community – 25+ join
  • Our Founders Cared – 5 Past Presidents join
  • Superman – 25+ increase in male members
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